Updated advice from the Advisory Service for Squatters

If you are currently squatting, or believe you may otherwise be affected by the new laws, we recommend that you read the following advice and resources from the Advisory Service for Squatters.

September 1st – what happens now?

On the 1st September S144 of LASPO 2012 comes into force. We’ll leave it to others to explain how this is crap law, in response to myths from sections of the media, brought in by a government of the rich.

The intention is to criminalise squatting in residential property.

We do not think that it will fully achieve this, and non-residential property remains as safe to squat as before.

We expect that the next few months will see a spate of challenges and test cases, which will draw lines between what can and what can’t be done.

We at ASS, along with others, have been going through what’s actually in writing, to work out how we can help people to be as safe as possible. Unfortunately we can’t be as reassuring as we would wish.

What is clear is that we should take down our old much-loved Legal Warnings, as these will be read as an admission of committing a criminal offence.

We will be monitoring the situation, writing to police stations to explain where they might be going wrong, working out how to go to court to get injunctions against illegal evictions, helping arrange legal challenges, and helping those who want to stand up to this stupid attack on our rights to a home, and to social space.

For more frontline support there are a number of local support networks as well as the Eviction Resistance Network, and others. Get involved, organise and support each other.